Japan Strengthens Diethylene Glycol Check System
This article was originally published in PharmAsia News
Executive Summary
Amid problems of plastic making material diethylene glycol being mixed into drugs and toothpastes, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare changed the standards in the Japanese Pharmacopoeia to strengthen the evaluation system. The new standard specifies that the diethylene glycol content should be below 0.1 percent during a purity test of glycerin and concentrated glycerin. The standard is in line with European and American standards. MHLW also made the same changes to glycerin and concentrated glycerin in the Material Specifications for Drugs and Quasi-Drugs 2006 version. The new standard takes effects Feb. 21. (Click for more-Japanese language